Joe got his puppy, a German Shepherd

[Jennicut]

EAST COVENTRY — German shepherd breeder Linda Brown looked out her window to find seven black Secret Service vehicles in her driveway over the weekend.

But what would you expect when Vice President-elect Joe Biden goes shopping for a puppy?

It seems President-elect Barack Obama's children were not the only ones promised a dog after the presidential election. Biden's wife, Jill, made the same assurance to her husband if he and Obama, his running mate, won the election.

Jill Biden had taped pictures of different dogs on the back of the seat in front of Biden on his campaign plane to inspire the candidate as he crisscrossed the country in the final sprint to election day, according to published reports during the campaign.

aturday, Biden selected a three-

month-old male German shepherd from one of Brown's litters, a puppy that will turn out to be a "big boy," Brown said with a chuckle.

"He is the nicest person on this earth," Brown said about her meeting with Biden, the Democratic senator from Delaware, now getting ready to take over the office of vice president.

A spokeswoman at Biden's transition press office said the office does not comment on Biden's personal matters but did confirm that Biden had two German shepherds in the past and likes the breed.

Brown said the whole process started with a phone call from Mark Tobin, who coordinates the New Castle County Police K-9 division. "He came up to scout me out," Brown said. "He said I had beautiful dogs."

Tobin, who also owns and operates a police K-9 camp, does personal dog training and police dog training, running 32 canine units in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

"I searched the kennels in the area and (Brown) has a decent history with the German blood line and her paperwork was in line," Tobin said.

http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2008/12/11/news/srv0000004236018.txt#blogcomments

[PatSeg]

1. That picture is great!

He looks so happy and what a cute puppy!

[Eurobabe]

2. Oh how cute, look at the HUGE paws

German shepherds are VERY smart dogs. Unfortunately all I associate with them is a bad smell, my Aunts had one, and it stunk something awful! Maybe it had a skin allergy?

I remember being trapped in a trailer they had at the St. Lawrence Seaway, the dog smelled so foul I couldn't sleep at night!

[Muttocracy]

5. I think it's the undercoat...

I used to think the same thing when I volunteered at a shelter. One of the reasons I swore I'd never get a German Shepherd. But now that I have two 1/2-GSDs, I think it's the undercoat not getting brushed out enough, or kept clean, or if it gets wet - whew!

[Eurobabe]

24. I don't think they ever brushed or bathed her

at least not that I heard of. They were just two little old ladies, sisters who lived together, and this dog was their life. The one Aunt had a daughter, the other no kids at all. They were sweet, but I couldn't stomach the smell of that dog! :puke:

[Muttocracy]

28. I petsit for a friend's GSD

and she gets that icky wet dog smell. She's a country dog and her human mom doesn't care, but I notice it. They have a little pond in their yard and she loves to take a dip.

[AspenRose]

3. Oh how sweeeeet

I'm sure there will be folks here who will be upset he didn't go to a shelter, but.... :shrug:

His dog, his choice. And it is a cutie pie.

When my boys are older I hope we can get a dog. Labradoodle or Corgidor.

[Muttocracy]

6. so which one gets the dwarf legs, a Corgidor or a Labrorgi?

or whatever the other version of the mutt is called. I once saw a Lab/Basset mix that was so pitiful. I thought he was lying down as I walked toward him, but he had the full Lab body on stubby Basset legs, plus he was a bit overweight!

And yes, it's Joe's choice, and it sounds like he did some homework and went with a good breeder.

[AspenRose]

8. Here's a couple

"Hollywood" reminds me of the dog from "Martha Speaks." :rofl:

[Muttocracy]

11. all very cute! A friend of a friend has a Corgi - he's a neat little dog :)

[Muttocracy]

4. Aw, cute pups. Wish he'd gone rescue but the cops would have gone for a breeder

which makes sense for them, but a lot of purebred GSDs are a health nightmare. I love my GSD mutts, but my friend's purebred GSD from a big deal breeder has cost her a fortune and been sick an awful lot.

Hey Joe - if you're reading - this is a great group in your area - go there next time! ;)

http://magsr.org/

[Jennicut]

10. Shelter/rescue dogs are not really good with kids

I had a lot of trouble with a black lab that was rescued. It was not to be trusted around my girls and I am sure Joe's grandkids will be there a lot. My rescue dog was nippy and growled at my girls and then one day charged at one of them. That was enough for us. If you want a real relaxed family dog, you have to go to a breeder. I am going to go to one after Christmas to try another lab.

[Muttocracy]

12. totally disagree based on my years at shelters and breed rescue

The problem is usually shelters or rescues who don't know how to temperament test their dogs or steer them into appropriate homes.

I think anyone who thinks they can guess how a puppy will act toward children when it's an adult is kidding themselves. You can judge an adult dog's temperament because it's there right now.

My two shelter mutts were strays so I have no idea what their puppyhoods were like. They're both fantastic with children, very gentle and tolerant. There's no general rule about rescue vs. bred when it comes to suitability with children.

[Jennicut]

15. Well I guess I had such a bad experience and it was so hard to give the dog up

We found out later he was most likely abused by his previous owner. He was already 4. I am very mistrustful now. I am not sure I want to try a rescue dog again until the kids are much older (they are only 3 and 4). Our dog really did have behavior/temperament problems. He was fine with us but with strangers and even around my parents who came by every week he would start to bark and growl and then pee and shake. He seemed okay with the 4 of us so I just dealt with it but then one day my daughter crawled into bed with us in the morning and the dog growled at her and went after her. Luckily my husband batted him down. I don't know, we will try again but I am not sure what type of dog or where to look yet.

[Muttocracy]

22. oh, that sounds devastating for everyone...

sounds like the dog had fear and confidence issues. He might have respected you and you husband but not your kids. The mixed fear/aggression stuff is scary and not what you want around kids. In many breeds, the dogs with confidence issues are the ones that scare me (fear biting).

I bet you've got your hands full with the kids. Hold off on the dog until you're ready.
:hug:

One thing you could do is foster for a rescue group. That takes out the longer commitment, but also lets you find a good match. One of my dogs is a foster flunkie who never went back :)

[Muttocracy]

13. and as far as relaxed family dog, working breeds aren't the way to go anyway

Both German Shepherds and Labs need a lot of time and energy and I wouldn't choose either large breed to be around small children.

[Jennicut]

16. Yeah, I am not sure what type yet we are going to go with. Any suggestions?

[Muttocracy]

21. Not one of my favorite breeds! :D some books...

:rofl:

My favorites and the ones I've done a little breed rescue with are Siberian Huskies, German Shepherds, and Border Collies. They are all too clever and energetic for general household use. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment but I also don't have kids :)

Beagles are often good with kids and a good size for kids (not too big to knock them down, not too small to be delicate). Serious rabbit hunting lines might not be the way to go though. Golden retrievers or golden mixes are a good one to consider. I'm a big fan of mutts - cuts the extremes down. I also wouldn't want to deal with small kids and a puppy at the same time - better to get a middle-aged dog. Shelters or rescues that temperament test their dogs, and better yet have them go through foster care, do a really good job matching up dogs and families. If the shelter/rescue is saying "this dog should NOT go to a home with kids" and "this other dog is NOT good with cats" that's a good thing. My dogs fall in the gentle-with-kids-lethal-to-small-critters category.

Brian Kilcommons has 2 great books I love:

Mutts, America's Dogs and Paws to Consider

http://www.amazon.com/Paws-Consider-Choosing-Right-Family/dp/0446521515/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229052795&sr=8-12

http://www.amazon.com/Mutts-Americas-Dogs-Brian-Kilcommons/dp/0446519499/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229052795&sr=8-14

[Muttocracy]

23. found some more Lab rescues in CT too

from the AKC site to here - 4 come up in CT
http://www.thelabradorclub.com/subpages/searchrescue.php

[susanwy]

17. That is a pretty blanket statement

"If you want a real relaxed family dog, you have to go to a breeder."

Everyone of our dogs has been a rescue or shelter dog. Labs, mutts, border collie mixes, a rescued Weimaraner and one rescued blue tic hound I really miss (stroking her ears were so relaxing). None ever attacked my kids in 18 years, and only once did any of my childhood pets every bite (a cocker spaniel who didn't like her pups messed with). All (except the border collie) were very relaxed, especially the hound. Our current lab was a pound puppy, very sweet guy. Maybe something in your environment is making the dogs nervous? Some shelter dogs have food issues, so you have to watch for that if you have small children, who generally smell like something good to eat! But, you just can't dismiss all shelter/rescue dogs because of one bad experience. I have never, and probably would never go to a breeder when so many, many pets in shelters need homes. I wish Joe had gone to a shelter, or a German Shepard rescue, but I've had to forgive him on other issues, so I'll add this to the list. Maybe he wants to train the dog as a watch dog, probably wants to be sure Cheney doesn't come snooping around back at the VP house!

JMHO

Susan

[Jennicut]

18. I guess the level of abuse the dog went through was bad enough to make him unstable?

The dog is actually at a behavioral college now. He really needed some help. I guess not all dogs from shelters/rescue programs would be like that but it really makes me nervous to try again. The dog's issues were not something we could fix. We could not have anyone in our home, he just never adapted to strangers. And once the dog went after our 4 year old it was too much. It really want to cry thinking about it because having to give him back to the rescue program we got him from was so hard and we were attached to him. He was sweet to my husband and me but could not be around anyone else. No food issues, just complete submissive behavior that then turned aggressive. The behaviorist we gave him to said he needed some major retraining. I am really nervous about trying again.

[susanwy]

19. Wow, that sounds really tramatic

I can understand that reluctance. On retrospect, maybe we've been really lucky! There is a difference between the rescue dogs and shelter dogs, so that may be an avenue. I know our Weimaraner was from a rescue group and she was not abused, just abandoned by an idiot who decided she was getting too big, so he just moved and left her in an apartment when she was nine months old one winter (no food, no heat and water from the toilet). When the landlord found her she was almost starved to death. We literally had to wake her up every two hours and feed her, just like a baby. She always had some hip problems after that, but lived to be about 13 and was dumb as a box of rocks, but sweet. She was funny because he never had her tail cropped and when we got her she was too old for the procedure. If she was really happy she'd clear the coffee table of any contents with that tail.

The rescue organizations tend to do a better job of really evaluating the dog's personality and sometimes have a much better grasp of the circumstances of the dogs previous life. Our Blue Tic was also from a rescue organization, but she was a little puppy, so she had no history. Not quite as dumb as the Weimeraner, but she too had a vicious tail whip. We lost her to lymphoma three years ago. I don't know if it was the breed, but she did have health problems all her life.

I know that grey hound rescues are cool dogs, but big. I didn't know this, but they only generally race them for 2 or 3 years tops, then dump them. I'm also not too sure how they do with children, never had one myself, but the rescue group would know. A friend in Seattle had two of them, the sweetest dogs, OMG. My kids are older, but those dogs just snuggled up to the boys and just were great and my oldest is 6'4". The grey hounds didn't bark at him, growl or anything when we first met them. By the time we left a few days later, the kids wanted to take them home!

Good luck and I'm sure you'll find a family companion that will be a perfect fit!

Susan

(http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.org/about/about.html)

[Jennicut]

20. Thanks. I guess my husband and I have been traumatized a bit.

We are really scared about the next dog but we love animals and have had pets our whole lives. Our big black cat died a few years ago and we decided we wanted a dog. A puppy seemed like a lot of work to house train what will having a 3 and 4 year old and me going to school part time. His aunt fostered some black labs so we went to Labs4Resue.com and picked one out and it seemed to work for awhile but sadly he was just never socialized properly.
It makes me terribly sad about Greyhounds, I heard that they are dumped too. Maybe if we just get a young dog at a shelter it will be okay, Jake was already 4 and had his personality set.

[elleng]

7. Sweet-O!

I've been watching these Goldens since they were born yesterday!

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/shayla-%26-her-golden-retriever-puppies

[livvy]

9. Oh.My.God! That picture is wonderful!

I might have to use it for my desktop. Cupcake looks so happy, and I know that feeling well. There is nothing quite like snuggling your new puppy. They smell so darn perfectly puppyish (love that puppy breath, too), and they feel so pleasingly plump and wriggly.
Look at the face on that baby (the puppy, folks...although the other baby looks pretty good too!). And the paws! Joe got himself a future big one!
I can visualize him playing with his new furpal, rolling around and laughing. His grandkids will love it, too.
I love it that Jill dangled a puppy as an incentive to win. They must have such a fabulous relationship.


on edit: I did it. It is now on my desktop with a lovely brown frame. It looks mahvelous, and makes me smile!:7

[Muttocracy]

14. Found the breeder's website! I approve :)

:bounce:

http://vonbraunhaus.tripod.com/

I'm such a dog nut I could be stuck on there for a while except my mutts want to go play in the snow for a while :)

on edit - gorgeous dogs, look very well-bred, look more like German working lines. The pup will be a handful but looks like a good breeder.

[PatSeg]

27. Those are some gorgeous dogs

This has to be great advertising for her and her dogs.

[Debi]

25. Look at that - the dog is already in love with him!

I bet - right here and now - the dog sleeps at the foot of the bed. :loveya:

[PatSeg]

26. That's definitely love!

But how could he not love Joe?

[Debi]

31. IDK! Everybody loves Joe! n/t

[Muttocracy]

29. another dog article in my Google Alerts...

http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20081212/NEWS01/81212008/1002

some more details

another one - http://www.examiner.com/x-1028-NY-Small-Dog-Examiner~y2008m12d11-Joe-Biden-buys-German-shepherd-puppy

[Muttocracy]

30. yet more photo and video... off to watch...

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20081211/NEWS/81211038

:popcorn:

[elleng]

32. JoeIs,

can't stand commenters bitching about 'oh no, breeder/puppy mill!' Guess I'm just jealous!

[Muttocracy]

33. personally, I wish he'd gone for breed rescue, but at least he didn't go puppy mill

I think a lot of people don't know there are breed rescue groups just for certain breeds and it would have been a nice plug for them. But at least Joe worked with someone to screen breeders and dogs and the breeder isn't sending out their dogs at 6 weeks on a ready-for-Xmas special.

I'm learning that I must NOT read comments on newspaper boards - they attract the weirdest angry people who take power in anonymity to trash people. (Says the lady on the internet board...LOL)

[CrispyQ]

34. OMG!! There is nothing cuter on this planet than a puppy.

And they all have that puppy smell. It's the same smell. Like new car smell - unique only to puppies.

I love my pound pup! :loveya: He has a few issues - like he can't be left in the yard alone - but I love this dog!! He's a catahoula - black leopard dog! In this photo you can see that his right eye is both blue & brown. I'll bet he was an adorable puppy!


Booyah!


He was six & a half when we got him. He had been in the Cheyenne pound more than once & they brought him down to Boulder, where I adopted him. He's been with us almost three years now. I will say, though, this dog needs his exercise. If people weren't walking him, he would drive you crazy! My husband takes him out daily for a 2 mile walk. Only if the weather is really bad does he miss a day & Booyah gets wound like a little spring toy.

This is my first experience with an older dog. It's odd to have a dog who has so much history of which you know nothing. I have a long narrow clock on one wall & when I took it down to change the time, he ran away from me, as if I was going to hit him with it.

[jillan]

35. I've had good luck too with shelter dogs.

My first one was an English Springer Spaniel.
She spent her whole life thanking me.



She was the sweetest dog I ever had.

Now we have my crazy Australian Cattle Dog.

What a fun breed. Smart, silly, playful. The only problem with Tobi is that she is 50 lbs of muscle and doesn't understand that she is not a lap dog.
Tobi needs to be walked too. I walk her daily for about 1/2 hr...which is great for my "sitting on the computer too much butt".

It's true - you never know what they have been thru before you get them, and you are taking a chance when you get a dog from a shelter....I'm sorry Jennicut had such a bad experience. :(

[PatSeg]

40. What a gorgeous dog

I've never seen a catahoula before. It is so sad thinking about what some of them have been through.

[jillan]

36. The LA Times says that the puppy is going to stay there with the breeder until after the

inauguration.

oh, and I loved this part:

...He hugged and kissed all of the shepherds."

[AspenRose]

37. Oh well

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4658360

I'm sure I'll be disappointed with something he does in the next 4 years. Matter of fact I can guarantee it.

I still love him though. :-)

[Muttocracy]

38. the more I read about the kennel the more horrified I am :(

[AspenRose]

39. I haven't read anything about the kennel

Any links to guide me?

[Muttocracy]

45. will look for links but in short

she had hundreds of dogs, sells dozens of litters a year. She has a smaller kennel under the name Joe's dog is in, and a huge one. She's been cited by PA state govmt and by the AKC, and they're both very lax.

http://bidendog.com/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cheri-shankar/biden-in-the-doghouse_b_150779.html (mentions how Biden has had a great voting record on animal issues, so this is frustrating)

I'm just SO pissed at the cops who led the Bidens to this place :(

[AspenRose]

41. Do folks HONESTLY think he MEANT to support a PUPPY MILL?

I can't believe he'd do something like that ON PURPOSE.

[PatSeg]

42. Obviously he wouldn't

Joe is very busy and he acted on the recommendation of the guy who trains police dogs.

The whole subject has gotten out of hand out there and people keep rehashing it over and over again. A few are getting downright nasty.


I should have known better than to click on those threads!

[AspenRose]

43. It doesn't take much to get the Joe-bashing underway, unfortunately.

They can't even give him the benefit of the doubt. :-(

"...he should have taken the time to research...."

Gosh, I thought he would be busy doing OTHER things. Sorry Joe, no dog for you if you're too busy to do research.

Good Lord.

[PatSeg]

44. I understand the animal-lover point of view

but I get the feeling that there are people who just need a cause to jump all over all the time. There were some reasonable posts by people who understand that life is not black and white, good and evil. I thought liberals and/or progressives WERE the reasonable people. That unbending mindset was what I thought we were trying to get away from.

[jillan]

46. She was fined in 2006 and not since.

So I am assuming that she no longer runs a puppy mill...because the Humane Society is obviously watching her.

Joe was referred to go there.
People are overreacting, as usual.

[Muttocracy]

47. just cited by PA Dept of Ag (who is notoriously lax)

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/harrisburg_politics/Kennel_where_Biden_bought_puppy_is_cited.html

Monday, December 15, 2008
Kennel where Biden bought puppy is cited

HARRISBURG, Pa. - The state Department of Agriculture has issued citations to the owner of the Chester County kennel where Vice President-elect Joe Biden recently bought a puppy.

In a kennel inspection report posted online Monday night Linda Brown, owner of Wolf Den kennel, was cited for violating the dog law for failing to provide records for dogs purchased or sold and failing to produce complete rabies vaccination records for her adult dogs.

Rabies vaccinations are required for all dogs over three months of age.

Dog wardens also found a strong ammonia smell inside the house where a number of dogs are housed, and broken wires and piping in several outdoor kennel areas. As a result they issued warnings for maintenance and sanitation and will conduct a follow up inspection in the near future, the report said.

Brown could face fines of up to $500 for each citation. It was the kennel's first negative inspection report in five years.

Brown, of Spring City, who also operates as Jolindy's German Shepherds, holds a commercial kennel license that allows her to keep more than 250 dogs. She had 84 dogs on the property when the inspection took place on Dec. 10.

[jillan]

48. JIOOU -

Reading this breaks my heart :(

I want to believe that Joe was referred to this kennel and has no idea about all the controversy surrounding this woman. :(

[Muttocracy]

49. I know - I blame the cops he asked for help - but they should know about rescue

A lot of the young male GSDs who end up in rescue are there because they were way too busy and driven for a normal family situation. So sometimes the teenage pups make fantastic K-9 or SAR dogs - they just need a job (well, many of us here including you understanding the herding breeds).

http://gsrne.org/WDP_Scrapbook.htm

http://gsrne.org/WDP_Spotlight.htm

http://www.magsr.org/ourheros.htm

I think the pup himself will be fine, the Bidens will be fine, and more people will pay attention to the Obamas' dog anyway, but maybe a few people will be educated about shelter dogs and rescues and all that. I'm kind of surprised since we know Joe was there at that press conference where Obama talked about shelter dogs - but maybe the Bidens had already picked out the pup.